The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1887-08-05
Ladies' Department.
How MIR. Perkins Was Convinced.

ned himself vigorously with his
broad-brimmed palm-leaf hat and
the words came out as if he meant
them. What have those hens done
mosc?a asked Mrs. Perkins. and the
wav she emphasized the snow"
showed plainly that "those hens''
were in the habit of getting into
mischief. "Done! they've been in
the garden again and scratched up
more'n half the tomato plants that |
set out the ether day. II l could
have INV way about it l wouldn't
have a hen on the farm; they're more
bother'n they're worth anyhow-al-
WAYS somewhere they're no business
to be, and forever scratching"
"Well I don't know as there is any
thing or anybody to prevent you
from having your own way, and sell
in every hen and chicken Oh the
place if you want to; only don't
see how man that's as fond as you
are of fried eggs, puddin's, and Gus
tard pies, and flostin' island, and
fried chicken, and so forth, can get
along without hens to lay eggs and
raise the chickens" "Fd like to
know if / can't buy what eggs and
chickens we need to eat?' ''Yes, l
s'pose So; but / reckon you'll
find they'll cost something in the
course of the year-that is five eat
eggs and chickens at the rate We've
been doin'." "Of course they'll cost
something; don't expect anybody
will give us what eggs and chickens
we want. But, continued Mr.. Per-
kins, in a tone of conviction, sit will
be cheaper to buy eggs and chickens
than it will be to raise them ourselves
The grain and other stuff that the
hens eat in the course of the year
would pay twice over for all the eggs
and chickens we use. I've always
thought so, and said so, too, but
you've always been so set about
keepin' hens, and stack to it that
they paid their way, that I didn't
want to set up that you shouldn't
keep them,' and Mr.. Perkins looked
as If he considered himself q model
husband because he allowed his
wife to keep flock of hens.
"I've always stuck to it that the
hens paid their way, and more too.
because I know they did. You've
no idea-men folks never have-how
many eggs it takes to do the cooking
for a family like ours, especially
wien the man is as fond of custard
pies as you are. Why, Dan'l Perkins,
it takes three eggs to make decent
custard pie, and 1 make four or five
custard pies every week, and then
you amt satisfied; yes, I make a
good fifty dozen eggs up into custard
pies every year, and if you had to
buy all those eggs they would cost
seven or eight dollars at least.' l
suppose so, said Mr.. Perkins, but
those thirty hens eat up three or
four times seven or eight dollars
worth of grain in a year. I don't
care If they do, answered Mrs. Per-
kins. We use eggs in other things
besides custard pies; and when we
have fried or boiled eggs you know it
takes dozen for a meal for the six
OF US. I don't think I'm much out
of the way when | say we use hun
dred dozen in this house every year
And besides all we use we have
good many to sell. l reckon you'd
find bigger store bills to pay than
you do now. if we didn't turn in so
many eggs. And you don't seem to
take into account ell the chickens we
eat" "a
II own the chickens are good eat
in, and come handy when we want
fresh meat in hot weather; but it
costs all they're worth to raise them.
And you don't take into account all
the damage the hens do in the garden
and other places. Last year after l
sowed my oats they were on the
field all the time until after the oats
were up six inches high; and they
scratched up SO much of the seed
that there wasn't haifa crop on the
upper end of the field. Then after
the oats began to get ripe those
pesky hens were in the field pulling
down all the time. tell you Betsey
o ten dollar bill wouldn't have paid
for the damage the hens did to that
oat Geld. But faint any use to try
and convince woman that hens amt
profitable. II thirty hens ate up
forty dollars worth of grain every
year, and destroyed as much more,
you'd stick to it, of course, that they
paid their way and some over" r''--
But" said Mrs. Perkins, calmly,
''thirty hens don't eat forty dollars
worth of grain in year, and they
don't destroy forty dollars worth,
either. And there isn't any need of
their destroying anything, or getting
into any place they've no business in.
Ever since we've lived here, I've
been trying to have you make yard
for them, so that we could keep them
where they belong. / don't like to